# Delineating Bird Ecological Networks in Coastal Areas Based on Seasonal Variations and Ecological Guilds Differences

## TL;DR

This study examines how different bird groups use coastal habitats in different seasons, finding that swimming birds have the most connected habitats while wading birds have weaker connections.

## Contribution

The study integrates field surveys and citizen science data to reveal seasonal and guild-specific variations in coastal bird ecological networks.

## Key findings

- Swimming birds showed the most complex and well-connected habitat networks.
- Conservation priority areas were most extensive in spring, autumn, and winter but reduced in summer.
- Wading birds exhibited the weakest connectivity in coastal habitats.

## Abstract

Birds rely on connected habitats to migrate safely between breeding and wintering areas. However, growing human activities and habitat loss along coastlines are disrupting these natural routes. While many studies have focused on inland areas, little is known about how different bird groups use coastal habitats during different seasons. In this study, we combined field surveys with public bird observation data to explore how four types of coastal birds (wading birds, songbirds, raptors, and swimming birds) use the landscape in different seasons. We found that suitable habitats and movement routes change greatly between seasons and bird groups. Swimming birds exhibited the most complex and well-connected habitat networks, whereas waders showed the weakest connectivity. Conservation priority areas also changed markedly with season: they were most extensive and connected in spring, autumn, and winter, but became more restricted in summer. These findings highlight the need to plan bird conservation in coastal areas based on both seasonal changes and differences among bird groups, helping to protect movement routes and maintain biodiversity.

Habitat fragmentation and human disturbance pose major challenges to bird movement and ecological connectivity, highlighting the need for effective ecological network construction in conservation planning. Although coastal ecological networks have received increasing attention, few studies have simultaneously examined seasonally explicit patterns, functional guild differences, and seasonally varying recreational disturbance. Using a coastal case study, we analyzed seasonal (spring, summer, autumn, winter) and guild-specific (wading birds, songbirds, raptors, and swimming birds) variations in bird ecological networks by integrating systematic field surveys (2023–2024) with citizen science records (2020–2025). Results indicated clear differences among guilds and seasons: swimming birds exhibited relatively complex and well-connected networks, whereas wading birds showed lower connectivity. Conservation priority areas varied markedly across seasons, being more extensive in spring (28.62%), autumn (23.69%), and winter (22.09%), but substantially reduced in summer (17.07%). Our findings provide a locally grounded reference for adaptive conservation planning in rapidly changing coastal landscapes, with particular attention to the protection and connectivity of coastal and estuarine wetlands for wading birds.